Blank Pages
by MUCC 55-69
Summary: "Halfas age. I mean, Vladimir Masters died from that. What makes HIM any different?" In the year 2.220, mysteries about a certain halfa and a young pirate queen rise into the minds of four sixteen year old teenagers with a passion in documentaries. postTUE, DannyxOC
1. Chapter 1

"HEY! GIVE THAT BACK!" A boy shouted while chasing a vibrant red blur through the croud.

"NO WAY! COME AND GET IT, JAKE!" The blur, now identified as a teenage girl shouted back. She was holding a notebook tightly, which apparently was the boy's target.

"IT'S NOT FUNNY, NINA! SERIOUSLY!" The chasing continued for a little bit more, until the girl turned and paused into an alley. "Give it back, Nina."

"Okay, okay, you party-pooper. Here you go." She handed him the notebook and grinned smugly when the boy, Jake, glared at her.

It really looked like Nina and Jake weren't aware of the strange looks they received by people passing by. Nina Evans and Jake Grahams are quite the sight, indeed.

One is an ultra- hyperactive mathematical genius with a height of 1,57 m. and a mess of red hair, while the other is a 1,90 m. tall jock with native american origin and the personality of a puppy. Somehow, they manage to look like the most fitting couple in the universe.

"Don't do that again. Claire is going to kill me if I lose her notes! That thing is precious! You know she isn't lending it easily!" Jake grumbled as they made their way towards the centre of the town.

"Like I don't know that! Still, it's good to have fun sometimes! Jeez... for a jock, you sure are boring..." Nina answered while trying to avoid the lines between the tiles. She looked around and sighed.

Amity Park sure has changed. She read somewhere that it used to be a small, closed-up, ghost-infested town. While the occasional ghost appearances were still included, no one would even dare to call it a 'town' nowadays. _I don't know if the term 'city' is relevant anymore._

Through the years, Amity Park has turned into a very promising destination for many. Holding the title of #1 Haunted Place in the World for 195 straight years has brought a lot of tourists in, along with scientists and various types of professionals, making it a city with a vastly uprising intelligence and significance level.

But Nina didn't like that anymore. She wants old-fashioned, she wants picturesque, she wants simple... she wants the Amity Park how it was 200 years ago, during the Phantom era.

She sighed again and turned to her pouting friend.

"Oy, don't take everything I say seriously, you big pup. Honestly, you're so huge yet even I can beat you with a single phrase... How you're handling the football team, it sure surpasses me..."

"Who takes you seriously? I was talking to you and you were into your own little world again!"

Nina sighed yet _again._

"Fine, what do you want, Jake?"

"It doesn't matter..."

"Seriously, what?"

"I said it doesn't matter! We're here anyway." He said marching into a small- cafeteria.

'White Raven Cafe' was the name of the small DVD/book-store/internet cafe placed on the lower floor of one of the oldest buildings in Amity Park (counting more than 300 years at least), the Manson 's going to appear a lot in this story, better say a bit more about it.

An old-fashioned place,yet quite popular with the locals, cozy and friendly, followed up by a great variety of background music for every taste, White Raven cafe was definitely worth its fame.

Owners of the cafeteria that refused to be modernized were a young couple, that was using the rest of the mansion's floors as their house. A 19-year-old half-blind boy named Nedail "Ned" Tonnef and his fiancée, a 20 year old Goth named Alisson "Alie"Seetlop.

Ned was handsome, yet intimidating,with his clouded left eye and tall stature, but also overly kind and friendly with everyone, when Alie was little,adorable yet frightening,since she didn't speak at all beside the basic that was needed for the store, and had always a poker face with the most intense glare in her eyes (that were also scary...a shade of brown so bright it looked almost orange-y) eccentric with their own way.

Nina and Jake hurried into the cafeteria and towards a table on the far corner of the store. The target, a 4-person table was already occupied by two teenagers, a boy and a girl. The girl was the spitting image of Nina,only with straight hair and glasses, and the boy was of Middle East origin obviously, with a long black ponytail and handsome golden features.

The original occupants moved up their gaze to meet that of the newcomers and waved. Jake handed the girl with the glasses the notebook, and she hid it deeply into her bag while Nina took the two remaining vacant seats and began talking.

"Next time you take Arthur and search the town, Claire. There is no way I'm going out with that doofus ever again." Nina grumbled while sitting down.

"Eh? _I am_ the problem now? Who was the one that took Claire's notes and ran around for two hours straight?"

Claire turned around to face Nina,eyes wide.

"You did _what_?"

"Jake, you're such a party-pooper!"

Jake sighed and threw a pitiful glance at Arthur,who shrugged apologetically. Jake sighed again.

"Did you at least do anything helpful?" He asked looking weakly at his friend, who had a smile of pity on his face. Arthur chuckled.

"Yeah, dude. Don't worry. We're almost done." He said, waving his hand towards a laptop that was placed opened on the side.

"Finally, some good news today. Did you find anything interesting?" Jake's eyes were now holding a hopeful look.

"You know that old movie...'Pirates of the Caribbean'? Did you know that most of the characters were actual people?" Claire, now calm and concentrated, asked generally to the new duo.

"Well yeah...we were the ones who found that out,remember?"Nina dead panned.

"Yeah...Jack Sparrow, Elizabeth Swan, William Turner...Blackbeard and Angelica,too! But obviously the storylines themselves come from various legends, and are no way in hell real." Claire answered, nodding her head.

"The thing is..." she continued, a small smirk forming on her face "...they all lived during the 1700s...but did you know Jack Sparrow had siblings? Two younger sisters,apparently. The middle one was actually Elizabeth Swan's stepmother, while the youngest...well, the youngest was the Bloody Queen of the Seven seas, Sagnant Talia (sagnant= Catalan for bleeding)." By the time she finished, her sister and Jake were looking at her dumbstruck.

"Wha...are you serious? Sparrow, Amelia Poletes and the Bloody Queen were siblings? And Talia was the youngest? Oh my God! Where's the logic in there?" Nina loudly exclaimed.

"If you think about it, she _was_ one of the youngest piratines and she _did _die at age 20. So it's not that surprising." Arthur explained, calming Nina down.

"Quite the promising tale. We could work with that. And don't think we did nothing. Check this out." Jake smirked, pulling a middle-sized metal box from his backpack.

It was old and dusty and it looked like it passed through a tornado twice, but it still was sturdy enough. The colour was black, but what caught the attention of Claire and Arthur was a faint symbol on the top, colored white (once). It looked like a ghostly D, shaped to match the letter P inside it.

"I found it in my attic. It has photos in. Now we know what he looked like."

And then, Jacob Grahams-Fenton, opened the box with a click.

**A/N: so this is my first try ever on a fanfiction. Please tell me what do you think. I have written only this much, and I'm not exactly sure when to bring out other characters, because the party has yet to start. I wanna make this a big fic, and I promise to do my best in updating^^. A big thanks to YAJJ and Deathfang17 for helping me out in those dark times of need!I owe you guys one! (Well, more than one, really) Fighting!**


	2. Chapter 2

_It was old and dusty and it looked like it passed through a tornado twice, but it still was sturdy enough. The color was black, but what caught the attention of Claire and Arthur was a faint symbol on the top, colored white (once). It looked like a ghostly D, shaped to match the letter P inside it._

_"I found it in my attic. It has photos in. Now we know what he looked like."_

_And then, Jacob Grahams-Fenton, opened the box with a click._

"Oh! I like the drama!" Nina clapped her hands together enthusiastically.

"Yeah, yeah. But we're not here for the drama, Nina." Claire punched her twin on the forearm and moved a little closer to inspect the contain of the box along with the boys, who were already getting them out and placing them on the table.

"Woah..there's so much cool stuff here!" Arthur exclaimed, taking an old piece of what looked like high-tech handsfree, and placed it on his ear. "Does this still work?"

"Probably no. After all, they're all at least 200 years old." Claire pointed out, browsing through some blueprints.

Suddenly a slight gasp was heard from Nina, making the pair look at her and Jake, who were still rumnasing through the box.

"What is it?"

"There ARE photos here..." She said, holding up some old pictures for them to see.

They got down to business immediately, looking at the photos.

The first one was a bit more faint than the others, and it showed a couple on their marriage. The groom was huge, tall and with an intimidating posture, but with a bright proud smile and happy loving blue eyes (for some reason, the colour was very clear, in contrast with the rest of the picture). The bride looked petite compared to him, even if she was normal- sized, but her voluptuous curves still showed through the wedding dress. She had obviously vibrant hair, but the colour was fainted, and she,too, had light- coloured eyes, but in her case the colour wasn't visible enough. A small description was written on the base of it.

"Maddie and Jack Fenton: Just married!" Read Claire and handed the picture to Jake. "Must be your great-great grandparents or something."

He nodded, staring at the picture and then placing it back in the box.

The rest of the pictures were more colorful, so obviously they were newer.

The next one showed the previous couple, now wearing what seemed to be bright hazmat suits, and two children. A girl, at about age 10, with bright orange hair matching her mother's and cerulean eyes, and a boy, at age 7-8, with big blue eyes and a mess of black hair. The girl was hugged by her mother, grinning on camera, and the boy was on his father's huge shoulders, with a shy smile on his face. At the bottom it read 'Maddie, Jack, Jasmine and Daniel: Family Photo!' Nina cooed at the photo.

"Aw...those must be their kids..." She said, handing the photo to Jake, who placed it in the box.

As they flipped through to the next picture, an ominous figure appeared over their heads. They four teens froze instantly and turned, eyes wide...

...only to meet the curious face of Ned Tonnef. He was holding an ipad, obviously there to take their orders, and after he did so he left quietly, leaving only a lingering sense of mystery that always seemed to be around him and his fiancée. Nina stared at his back for a little while before returning to her previous job.

"Jee, be a little more creepy, will ya?..." she mumbled and sighed.

"Did you say something?" Arthur turned at her questioningly.

"No, nothing...it's just that...those two really creep me out." she answered, throwing an uneasy look at the direction Ned disappeared.

"Well, you're not the only one." Arthur threw his own uneasy look and gulped. "

"I swear those two are..." He began to say but then Alie appeared with their orders. They paid on the spot and sighed with relief when she turned and left.

"Honestly, what's the deal with that look?" Claire murmured. Suddenly, her phone rang. The other three turned to her as she answered it.

"Hello?Oh, mom! Yeah, we're at the Raven..Yeah, she's here...Arthur and Jake,too." she moved her phone away from her ear. "Mom says hi." She put it back on her ear again. "Okay, mom. We'll be there in a few. Bye!" and she hung up.

"What did she say?" asked Nina.

"She said that we should start heading back. Tomorrow grandma is coming over and we gotta be prepared." answered Claire while picking up her stuff.

"Oh ok..." Nina started getting ready to leave too. "Hey Jake! Can we borrow the box for today to check stuff out? We'll give it to you tomorrow, I swear!"

Jake eyed his friend suspiciously for a second and with a defeated sigh handed her the metal box.

"But be careful, chipmunk. This stuff is from my mom's family, and you know how she is for her things."

"Yeah,yeah, of course we'll be careful, doofus!" She grinned and held the box close, while standing up.

"So, see you tomorrow!" They waved goodbye and head towards the exit.

While Nina remained oblivious as ever, Claire didn't fail to notice the intense stare of the female shop owner when they passed by the counter. She shivered and pushed her sister to move faster.

But the red-haired girl did fail to notice the troubled look that Ned Tonnef was throwing towards a certain black metal box her lovable sister was holding.

"Another ghost attack, huh?" Krista Fenton stared dejectedly at the TV screen that was currently showing the latest ghost reporting. The front door bell ringing snapped her out of her thoughts, and she moved to open up.

"Hey! Welcome back, kiddo! How did it go? Did you start putting the new film together yet?" she asked, smiling warmingly at the newcomer.

Jake smiled back and threw his backpack and jacket on an armchair nearby when entering.

"It went well, mom. No, we didn't start yet. There's still missing info about both Phantom and the Bloody Queen, so that's currently a big no-no."

Suddenly a bundle of black skipped down from the second floor and stopped in from of Jake, looking up at him with huge blue eyes.

"Oh, it was only Jake..."

Jake snorted.

"What was that, pipsqueak? Aren't you happy to see your big brother, Mari?"

The small girl answered without a second thought. "Nope."

"Why you..." Jake started hunting his little sister around in the old Fenton residence, while his mother laughed heartily at her children's antics.

She looked at the photograph sitting atop the fireplace and sighed, a smile on her face.

"If only you were here to see this, darling..." and with that, she turned off the lights in the living room and followed her kids upstairs.

A/N: So, here's the second chapter. Thanks to everyone who reviewed (even 1 review is enough for me) and I hope you enjoyed it. Like I said, I want to make this a big fic, so details about the characters' backgrounds will be revealed slowly. In this chapter it was Jake..next chapter I'm thinking of the twins, cuz Arthur has a very complicated backstory...If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask on the reviews, and I accept criticism,too! ^^

Lastly, I will try to update regularly, but in 3 days summer exams start so I don't make any promises...that's why I'm updating a lot right now...^^


	3. Chapter 3

_Slam._

Nicolene Evans, AKA Nina, slammed the door of her school locker a little rougher than needed, flinching at the sound and mumbling an embarrassed '_oops' _through her teeth. She then proceeded to crack her knuckles and turn around, only to come face-to-well...chest, with a tall figure.

She looked up bewildered and frowned when she saw the familiar golden eyes of Jacob Grahams staring down at her.

"Oh. It was just you." She exclaimed dryly.

"Oi, oi, now. What's with the reaction? You and Mari both..." He said, eyebrow twitching.

"I like the kid. Your sister is far smarter than you." Nina teased her friend as they moved along the corridor of Casper High (upgraded version).

"You know you don't believe that."

"Believe me I do. Anyway, did you do anything interesting after going home yesterday?"

"Something like...?" Jake looked at her questioningly.

"Dunno...perhaps...digging up anything new on Phantom? It's quite the feat that you're his, what? Great-great nephew or something? You have to use that." She said lecturing-ly as she pushed the door to class.

"Yeah, well, I guess it is. But still, you may like him, but I do not intend to pass all my free time searching up my great-great-whatever uncle, half-ghost or not." he snapped and sat down.

After a few moments, the door opened again to reveal a tall handsome boy with long black hair tied in a ponytail, and almost all females swooned at him. The boy walked in with grace before looking up, where he saw Jake and Nina bickering, and waved his hand before walking up to them.

Odion Arthur Foley, AKA Arthur (going by his given middle English name rather than his original Egyptian first name) then proceeded to sit down next to Jake.

"Hey, you player. What's up?" Jake high-fived his best friend with a smile.

"Besides the usual, nothing. Except if you count Star telling me yet _again_ to quit hanging around with you and be her boyfriend." He sighed. "I told her it's not happening, and she proceeded to ask if you two were together, in which I didn't reply."

"Th-that's ridiculous! What gave her that thought?" Jake muttered, tomato-faced.

"Dunno..." Arthur smirked cruelly at his giant friend's childish antics, and before he got the chance to say anything more, the door opened and the professor got in to start his lecture.

Claire was not exactly in the mood today. She was feeling really uneasy, for some reason, and the fact that she had first period with the A-list bunch didn't help the matter in the least. She knew that both her sister and herself, along with their two male best friends, could easily belong in the A-list. But they didn't, because they all believed cliques were clichéd and idiotic.

And today that belief just got stronger.

She had better things than Star wanting to hook up with Arthur to deal with, and she felt very annoyed that she couldn't, and instead she had to be bothered listening to the blonde trying to persuade her into matchmaking.

"No can do, Star. I'm very busy at the moment, and Arthur has already given his answer, so it's kinda useless to try anyway. If he already said no, it means no. Don't sweat it."

"He is just playing hard to get. There is no guy that says no to THIS!" Star said nodding towards herself. Claire exasperatedly rolled her eyes.

"Just...no. It's your issue. I'm not getting in the middle,ok?"

But Star didn't get to answer, as right at that moment two figures walked in. One was their homeroom professor, Mr. Lancer (of the future) and the other was someone who _definitely shouldn't be there._

Tall, well-built, black hair...blue eyes, one lighter than the other...

Ned Tonnef had just walked in.

Claire was definitely surprised. Most of the class was openly gaping (who DIDN'T know of the handsome owner of White Raven cafe?) but she managed to keep an _almost _straight face, only widening her eyes a bit.

"Students, today we will have Mr. Tonnef joining us, as he is a part of a very special and _classified_ project Principal Ishiyama is working on currently. Don't bother him or else there are going to be consequences. No questions. Let's begin." Mr. Lancer announced and immediately began with his newest lecture.

Ned was seated at the back of the class with a laptop, occasionally looking up from it towards the class, and making Claire's hair at the back of her neck stand still for some reason. When she turned to look at him, she found him glaring openly and directly at her with cold unreadable eyes, his clouded left eye fixated on her with a scary effect. Claire shivered and turned back again, and when the bell rang she made sure to get out of that class as fast as possible.

The last thing she saw was Ned glaring at her, now with a clearly unwelcoming look, before frowning at turning to Mr. Lancer.

Her pace quick, she went directly for her locker, and when she reached and opened it, she found something unexpected inside.

It was a piece of paper that was writing 'Don't put your nose where you don't belong. Forget your little project and everything about it.' She frowned._ What the...?_

She didn't get the time to think more about it, as that exact moment the bell signalled the beginning of the next period, and Claire had to run for her life.

Fortunately, this period she would be with Arthur, so she wouldn't fell lonely. She smiled at that thought, temporarily forgetting the note, and got in the classroom.

"What in the galaxy is this?" Nina voiced while looking at the strange note. Jake was honestly confused, and had a quite adorable expression, one that was screaming puppy. Arthur was frozen, eyes wide and lips on a thin line. Claire already knew about it, so she was just looking at it with a stern look on her face.

"Why are they telling us to stop our project?" Nina was, too, quite confused, and she couldn't think of a legit reason as to why would someone want them to stop working on their documentary project.

Filming documentary films on various interesting topics was something the company of four was doing since as long as they could handle cameras and computers. They always liked to know more facts about fun stuff than others, so they were quite strict on the material type they used. A little while back they had started on a film on Sanglant Talia, also dubbed as the Bloody Queen, who was a notorious psychotic piratine back in the 1700s. There was next to nothing known about her, so they thought (and they were correct) that it would be very cool to throw a little light on her personality.

But with the upcoming celebration for the ghostly hero of Amity Park, Danny Phantom ,they also decided to do a small film for him, since he played probably the most important role in making Amity Park as it is today, before his disappearance in 2010.

"Why would someone want us to stop?"

"Maybe they're afraid we'll find something they don't want to be found out?" Arthur suggested.

"Well there isn't really any other scenario to go along with, is there?" Nina snapped at him, making Arthur frown deeper. "Well, it doesn't matter. Like we're gonna stop. We're not doing anything bad, and both Sanglant Talia and Danny Fenton/Phantom were historical personalities, so it's not even illegal or anything..."

Her voice trailed off as Ned Tonnef passed right by them on his way out, a cold stern look on his face. He kept a fast pace and held his head high, making every person who looked at him and his mismatched eyes a shudder.

Nina eyed his back suspiciously.

"Well, there is really next to nothing we can do about it." Claire clarified.

"I hope you mean that it doesn't change anything. I don't know about you guys, but it's not stopping me. And now that someone wants us to, it's making me even more curious. I'm getting this thing done whether they like it or not." Nina announced and walked off.

"Oh boy." Jake sighed and rushed behind her.

By the end of the day, Nina hadn't budged a bit from her decided position, and acted like the note never existed. Jake had just forgotten about it. Arthur acted like he had. Claire played along nicely.

But still, something was definitely wrong.

She was getting that feeling the entire day. And it was not of the note. She was sure of it. On the contrary with her sister, she had a very sober and logical mind, and her skills were something to be afraid of, even if she didn't show them. To someone who didn't try to learn more about her, she would probably look like a stuck-up arrogant snob, which was partially true. She had her pride. And lots of it. But he was too mature to be a snob.

But that fact, along with their family's money and their good looks earned both hyper Nina and stern Claire the respect of all their classmates (A-list included).

Their house was in the neighbourhood of the best of the best in Amity Park. Close to Casper high (which, as it was quite the old school, was considered a very respectable education centre) and with a great view of the entire city and its surroundings, but strangely also easily accessible from almost every part of it.

The Evans twins lived in a new-built grand mansion with multiple floors and a huge garden. Generally, their home had the sense of aristocracy and class however you looked at it.

No one ever believed those two lived there except when they actually entered the house itself. Also for some reason no one believed at first that Nina's real name was Nicolene, or that Claire, much like Arthur, preferred to use her middle name (who would like to be called Alessandra every single day,really)

Well, Nina was always dressed in a very indie style, but not the supposed-cool-hipster one. No. It was the mystic one, the one that actually looked cool (I can't really explain it better, sorry).

Claire on the other hand was simplistic and sophisticated, but modern on the same time. Well, she could actually pass easily as the daughter of a tycoon and a lawyer (but also for some reason she matched perfectly with her sister when they were together. How rare is THAT?)

They were both quite satisfied with the lives they were leading, and their parents were very supporting and trusting of their decisions, but also gave them advices on the way. Claire actually wanted to become a lawyer, much like her mother, and live a quiet life in a luxurious apartment.

Nina loved economics (generally everything remotely mathematical) so she didn't have any problems in succeeding her father's entertainment company (she had always such great ideas, anyway). So, they were both set.

The only condition they ever set to their parents was that they were always going to film with Jake and Arthur their documentaries. They even managed to get some money out of the deal anyway, as there were various occasions on the past when the quartet sold a film or two to their school or a local channel (and not only local. As of course they were releasing their documentaries on-line, one about modern entertainment from the idols' perspectives was even translated and released in Japanese and aired there.)

So everything was great, really.

This fact did not shake even a little off of the ominous feeling set in Claire's stomach. She just knew as they passed in front of White Raven Cafe that something was going to go terribly wrong.

**A/N: So, if any of you few readers (if you exist out there, let me know, so I will keep writing...) have any idea where this is going, please tell me so in the reviews. I love stuff like that. Anyway, here was the Evans twins' complete backstory. Not such a big deal, really. I just hate very dramatic characters, so I offered them an easy life. Next I wanted to say more about Jake (and the fact of his missing father figure) and my probably second fav OC (after Alie Seetlop), Arthur. God, I LOVE that kid! ^^**


	4. Chapter 4

**Azorawing: Oh my precious first (and possibly last) reviewer! I feel really honored by you reading this humble little fic that even the writer herself doesn't know where it is going! *wipes tear* Anyway, in this chapter, most of the stuff is cleared, and I began first thing with my most loved backstory. Well your hunch was indeed correct, but it's not that hard to guess (I believe. I mean, how much more obvious can I make him, right?). In any case, please continue reviewing, even if it's by yourself, because I at least feel that I'm writing to someone. FIghting!**

Story

Arthur woke up with a start, sweat drops rolling down his golden face.

_It was that dream again._

It was a dream about that fateful night 14 years ago, when he and his parents visited Jake's dad (who was a close family friend) in the army. They were logging in some visitor quarters in the camp temporarily.

That night Arthur himself was being watched over by Thomas Foley, another soldier (friend of his parents) and his visiting pregnant fiancee, Eleanor. When, later that night, they went back to the lodge, Arthur saw hell.

There were people screaming and shouting everywhere, and a hellish red glowing tint in his vision made his head hurt. The worst thing of all, though, was the sickening scent of burning flesh that made the infant Arthur's insides churn violently. But he couldn't react at all.

Because his parents' lodge was on fire. And they were inside. Along with Jake's dad.

And, because life isn't easy, that was the fateful day when the two friends lost very important people from their lives.

His mother actually survived the fire...for about 1 hour. During that one hour, she managed to stay awake half of it, just enough to ask the Foley couple to take her son in, because they were the only ones who could do it (Krista, Jake's mom, would be in a very tight spot from now on, so she was out of question).

They didn't hesitate a second. And he was so grateful of them, that when he had the ability to choose, he chose Foley to be his last name, not his original one (Rankar). He just wanted to leave his past in the past and move forward.

But he never forgot. And still he occassionally got nightmares from that night. The only ones who knew were his three friends and his 14 year old brother, who was a laid-back smart-witted lad and that Arthur loved greatly, even if they weren't connected by blood.

Back in the present, Arthur sat up and sighed. He went to the bathroom to throw some water on his face. He knew he wouldn't sleep, so he sat in front of his computer to look some things up. Claire had sent him some of the pictures the box contented, and he decided to check them out.

He went through some of them, then paused. He squinted his eyes to focus on a familiar face.

_Nah, no way._

He shrugged off the strange feeling and continued, only to find himself staring back at the same picture of Daniel Fenton's face, who stared back at the camera with a pissed-off look. He didn't look happy to be photographed, even if (and Arthur had to admit it, as he was himself) he was quite the photogenic fellow.

But that look, those characteristics...Arthur knew them. It was a familiar face, hence a little younger, that was staring back at him through his computer screen.

He frowned in concentration trying to remember, to remember facts that would prove to his paranoid mind that there was no way Nedail Tonnef had nothing to do with Danny Fenton.

Well, first there was the fact that Danny Fenton was kinda dead.

_But he's not. It was revealed at his "funeral" by Vladimir Masters that he was a halfa, Danny Phantom. And Danny Phantom was last spotted entering the Ghost Zone what? Three months ago? So he's still here._

But Phantom became a full ghost after Fenton died.

_Or so the rumors say._

Phantom is fourteen. Tonnef is nineteen. Ghosts don't age.

Well that last one was stupid. _Some _ghosts did age. It was possible Phantom was one of them.

Arthur sighed. He checked his clock. 3:17 in the morning. No wonder he thought things like that. But the more he thought about it the more sense it made. And since Arthur believed in supernatural things like that, he decided to work like it was true. He wouldn't say a word to the others, of course...maybe only to Claire. He would've picked Jake, but his athletic friend had the tendency to overreact. Nina was out of question. She was the type of person to go sraight up to Ned and ask him: "Are you Danny Phantom?"

NOT a good idea.

He nodded to himself. Yes, he would tell Claire later. First thing first, find some proof. He noted down the inner dialogue he had with himself a few minutes earlier, and he quickly printed the photo, and glued it along. Now to find a picture of Ned.

That was quite easy, actually. A picture from the day White Raven Cafe first opened up, about three years ago. When he checked it, he almost face palmed. Ned was supposedly at his age at the time, 16 that is, and Alie 17, and when Alie looked younger (she looked 17 NOW, at her 20), Ned was exactly te same, which was NOT normal. Even his hair was the same! He quickly put the two photos next to each other and compared them.

The results were breathtaking. _It's definitely the same person. DEFINITELY!_

Which led to a single result: Nedail Tonnef was Daniel Fenton.

Then,something else stuck him...Nedail...Daniel...Tonnef...Fenton...Oh my Galaxy!

He quickly wrote down the two names and compared them. How could he be so stupid? Nedail Tonnef was a quite obvious change of letters in the name Daniel Fenton. Now he DID facepalm, as he even remembered Nina saying jokingly that the word Daniel reminded her of Nedail. God dammit...

Morning found Arthur lying face first into his notes, fast asleep. Along with morning, Kris, his brother, found him, and tickled him awake. Arthur then proceeded to smack his lovable foster- brother on the head, and went down to breakfast.

He was in a state of nirvana the entire day. He thought it was quite obvious, as he was constantly catching himself not paying attention in anything, but for some reason only Claire, his trusted cru...eh...friend, seemed to make note of that.

Which lead her to be worried, and to literally drag him by force (and with a ridiculous excuse) outside of school to talk. Arthur generally believed he was a good actor (he took acting classes for several years when younger), and he was quite annoyed that Claire managed to see right through him, like he was a little kid.

"Now, spit it out, Odion. What's up with you?" She said, concern and determination written all over her face. Claire was one of the very few people that called him by his first name (she said it had a nice ring to it), but only when they were alone, and Arthur let her do as she pleased, as it wasn't like he detested his name or something, he just thought it would be better to be called Arthur for the sake of not being asked questions by strangers or people he was just meeting.

He paused for a second, and then sighed and looked at her seriously.

"I found something last night." He said. She looked surpised.

"Something about what issue, exactly?" She asked, now curious.

"About the project. Phantom, specifically. Take a look at this." He said and he handed her his notes.

She looked at them for a few minutes, her eyes sporadically widening.

"N-n-no way! That... Ned is Fenton?How the..." She was obviously in a great state of shock.

"Why didn't you say anything earlier?"

He looked at her coldly."You know why. I can't let neither Jake not Nina know anything about this yet. You know how both of them tend to get."

She realised what he meant. "Yeah, I can see why. But we can't let this just go, and also we have to be extra careful not to let anyone else find out anything about this. It could get very bad if such big news made it out in public."

"That's what I thought, too. Also why I planned to tell only you. You are more rational than me, and definitely more than them. It's really a wonder that you weren't the first to piece it together."

She blushed and looked down on the notes, hiding her face with her bright red hair.

"Well, I also believe we should confront Ned about it." She said after a moment of pause.

Now it was Arthur's turn to be surprised.

"What? Why?"

"It's his secret. He has to be aware of who knows about him. And also I'm very curious as to if Alie knows about it."

He looked at her weirdly. "Why wouldn't she? She's his fiancee, for God's sake!"

"Yeah, but think about the fact that he's an over 200 years old halfa!"

"We don't know for sure that he's still a halfa." He corrected.

She looked at him judgingly. "Seriously, Odion? I thought you were smarter than that. Of course he's still a halfa."

"But.."

"No buts, Odion." She was final with that, and that made Arthur angry.

"Halfas age. I mean, Vladimir Masters died from that. What makes HIM any different?"

Now for that, Claire had no answer. Arthur smirked triumphathly.

"Let's head back for now. In the afternoon we're going to confront Ned about it, what do you say?" He proposed.

"That sounds like a plan." She smiled and they head back inside.

The day went by too fast and at the same time too slowly for Claire's liking. She had managed to find a very believable excuse ("I'll go for some extra training since I was sick the other day.") for her parents and Nina and head out. She was in front of White Raven Cafe 15 minutes later, which said something, as normally she hardly took half that time.

Arthur was already there, with his backpack that contain his notes, head hung down and a worried expression. She went to him and smiled. He looked up, noticing her. He smiled back weakly.

"Let's get this over with quickly, ok?" She said, trying to sound hopeful. Instead she sounded like a nervous wreck (which she was, but it wasn't supposed to show).

"Yeah, that's a good idea..." He almost whispered, and turned around.

They both stiffly walked in, and just stood there for a second. Then Claire turned to Arthur.

"Go sit somewhere privately. I'm bringing him over."

He nodded and headed off. She, istead, went to the front desk where Alie was.

Alie noticed her and lookd up with her characteristic icy stare, and Claire gulped.

"Can I talk to Ned, please?" She said with the best straight face she could keep.

A small frown appeared in Alie's face, but without a word she went off somewhere, only to get back a couple of minutes after, Ned on her tail. He looked at her oddly and plastered a fake smile on his face.

"How can I help you, miss?"

Caire rolled her eyes. "We need to talk about something. Come with me, please."

Ned turned immediately serious and waved to her to get the start. She headed to the back of the store where Arthur was waiting, and she saw him immediately straightening his posture. She sat sown and nodded for Ned to follow her example.

"So, what do you want to talk about?" Claire coughed a bit to clean her throat.

"Ned, right?" He nodded. "Do you know Danny Phantom?" She asked with a clean voice.

When she uttered that name, she clearly saw Ned's eyes widening and his whole posture stiffening. He then looked at them both with a suspicious glare. The duo mentally smirked. That was all the confirmation they needed.

"The supposed ghostly hero? I've heard of him."

"You know his real identity then, right?" She asked. He froze.

"Real identity? Wasn't he just Phantom? A ghost." She shook her head.

"No. He was a halfa. Half-boy, half-human. His real name was Daniel Fenton." At that point Ned seemed ready to fall off his chair, but he contained himself and instead asked his own questions.

"And how would you know that?" At this, Arthur answered.

"It was revealed more than 200 years ago, actually. He went missing in 2010, at age 18, and at 2013 he was declared dead, even if he never actually showed up. The mayor of Amity Park at that time, Vladimir Masters," At that Ned's eyes darkened " who was later revealed to be a halfa himself" Ned's brows shot up in surprise "announced the fact at Daniel Fenton's funeral. His empty 'grave' still exists, actually, along with his family's, in the old Amity Park cemetery." finished Arthur. Then Claire smirked deviously.

"You seriously didn't know? I mean, after more than 200 years, it would look quite stupid of you not to even know your own identity was revealed." She accused. Ned frowned, offended.

"Hey, most of the time I was...wait, what?" He realised what he just said, and his eyes went wide like saucers. Claire and Arthur now smiled widely and high-fived each other.

"Ha! You admitted it. You are Danny Fenton!" exclaimed Claire. Ned tried to pull a straight face, which he actually managed very well, but he couldn't fool those two.

"I don't know what do you mean." Now Claire seemed a tad annoyed.

"Cut the crap, Tonnef. Or should I say Fenton? Does Phantom work better on you?"

Ned glared at her.

"Ok fine. You look like you have everything figured out, which, by the way, I have no intent to ask how you managed, as I already know. I did try to warn you to save my case but nope, nothing." he exclaimed, having given up.

"Wait, you were the one who sent us those notes?" said Arthur, pointing an accusing finger at him. Ned...eh...Danny, nodded positively.

"Well, you didn't actually think that it would stop us, did you?" asked Claire.

Danny sighed and shook his head. "It was a friend's idea anyway. I gotta tell her it was a dumb idea and that she's dumb."

They laughed. Then suddenly Arthur seemed to realise something.

"Wait, Ned...er...Danny. You seriously didn't know your identity as a halfa has gotten out?"

Danny shook his head. "No. I was actually in the Zone for most of that time, more than 150 years, and when I came back here I suppose it wasn't a big deal anymore, and it's not like I looked it up or anything." THe duo nodded in understanding.

Claire and Arthur stayed there for a little more, promising they won't tell anyone, until someone interrupted their chat.

It was of course Alie Seetlop, who came to pick up her fiance. Claire and Arthur looked up to her when they saw her approaching, and after a moment they got such a shock that they felt as if their mouths were left hung open.

Alie had approached them with fast step and her usual straight somber face, but now she didn't have any particular icy glare, mostly something that could only be described as a nonchalant one. She reached their hiding place and put a hand on Danny's shoulder, staring at the duo. They stared back.

Then her face broke into a smirk. Leaving Arthur and Claire dumbfounded.

"Lady and gentleman, I am very sorry but this dearest fiance of mine has left poor customers out there wanting a drink, and serving them is NOT my job to do. So I gotta take him from your lovely company and hand him over to business." She pushed Danny up and away from them. She turned to leave herself, but then she froze and looked back at the pair.

"Oh, before I forget. It seems that the circumstances have changed, thus I have a very interesting proposal for you two."

They stared at her questioningly. Her smirk turned into a smile.

"Would you like to join Team Phantom?"

And then the party started.

A/N: So, the plot has been cleared quite a bit, I think. And I'm really surprised. I mean, when I first started planning this fic, Nina and Jake were supposed to be the main OCs and the twins were supposed to be the ones to first figure out everything and join Team Phantom (also Claire had light brown hair, but that changed, too.) If you read those notes...*shudder* I must burn them later. Anyway, thanks, lone reviewer and trio of followers, I shall not dissapoint you like I did with the previous chapter (I found so many mistakes on that one, honestly! And I'm supposed to be here with the purpose of beta reading!) REVIEW IF YOU READ THIS, I DON'T WANT MY FIRST REVIEWER TO BE ALONE! ^^ 


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: *sniff* Oh my Galaxy, you guys...you are too awesome...5 reviews...honestly...*sniff* I really feel like I'm in heaven, as I thought I would get a big ZERO for this...and you are so nice...I feel like I sould send you a present or something.**

**Azorawing: of course you aren't alone! I'm so happy! *bows 90 degrees* Thank you for your support! You are awesome!**

**Necrolys: If you ever read this, your review made my day, really! I was really tired when I got home, but the part with the badge made me so happy! Thank you so so so so so much! *bows* I tried my best to tell more about Jake, but there are urgent matters here, so it's not much, I'm sorry...**

_"Oh, before I forget. It seems that the circumstances have changed, thus I have a very interesting proposal for you two."_

_They stared at her questioningly. Her smirk turned into a smile._

_"Would you like to join Team Phantom?"_

_And then the party started._

They stared. And stared. And stared some more. Until Alie's smile turned into an impatient expression.

"So?"

"So what?" asked Claire.

"So...will you join?" Alie asked again, seriously. Arthur un-froze and looked at her like she was crazy.

"Wait, what's this all about? Team Phantom? Seriously?" He asked, dumbfounded.

Alie nodded. "Well, yeah. It is to help and protect Danny. We have already two members in, but we could definitely use some help, as they are...how can I put it... a bit _too_ mature to be able to handle a number of the team's demands." Arthur stared.

"So you mean..they're old." He said. Alie's eyes widened.

"Well you cannot go around calling people old! Danny is way older than them, but he is still as immature as a child. The point is, whereas they are extremely useful, there have been various occasions when difficult situations that the both of them could not handle arose, so now, seeing that you know everything, and there is absolutely nothing I can do to change the fact, I request of your assistance politely. So, I am asking one last time. Will you join us or will you not?" She exclaimed in a very passive and strong way.

Claire and Arthur looked at each other in doubt. After a while Claire turned back to her.

"Alie...it's okay to call you Alie, right?" Alie nodded. " Alright. Alie, it's really not such an easy decision...we kinda have to think about it. Today we came here just to let Danny know that we knew about him and also that we wouldn't tell a soul, and we didn't even know that you did, too. But joining Team Phantom...that's a tough one. Can you maybe,dunno...give us some time? To think about it?"

Alie was waiting patiently for Claire to finish her small speech, and after that she stayed thoughtful for a few seconds. Then she nodded, very seriously.

"Very well. I understand. But I can only ask for some conditions. I will not say not to tell, as you already intended not to by yourselves. Please understand my position. I love Danny dearly, and I will not tolerate him being hurt. So I will give you...one week, yes. Next Saturday at noon I will be in front of Casper High waiting for your answer. If you decide to decline, though, then believe me, you will be in a very tight spot. I am certainly not threatening you right now, because how long do you think it will take for Ghost Zone to find out that two more humans know? You will be definitely used as bait. Not that in Team Phantom you will be not. It is just way better if the bait has ecto-weapons."

Both Claire and Arthur listened to her carefully and mouthed a silent 'oh' when she finished. Well, they certainly saw where she was getting at, and told her so. They agreed without second thought to her proposition, and they parted ways with a feeling of silent but strong understanding.

Three days have passed since then, and Claire was never more proud for being a good actress. Her sister had yet to notice anything.

They were currently sitting st the sidelines of the football court to watch Jake's practice. The twins were into their sweats, as they had capoeira practice afterwards. Arthur was busy so he left early.

Watching Jake play, Claire wondered how he could be the same clumsy boy they were hanging out with everyday. In the field, Jake was literally transformed.

Nina always teased him that he was the worst choice for team captain, as he was too out of it all the time and clumsy, but, as she went way more often to his games and practice, she knew that it wasn't true. Jake was different there.

Normally he spoke kindly and softly, but he really possessed a strong pair of lungs, which he used wholeheartedly to give orders and instructions to his team-mates in the field. And when usually he was kind of slow and too out of it to react quickly to most situations, making him an extremely clumsy person, here he was fast and sharp, seeing everything and reacting to everything. He made quick and clever strategies that even outsmarted Nina's very own (as a clearly mathematical mind, she was a great strategist), and that said something.

Nina watched as Jake ran through the field, and she swore she saw the determined gleam in his eyes from under the helmet from the sidelines. She grinned at the thought._ He has changed so much..._

Jake...Jake was always kind of bipolar. One minute he would gladly get beat up for his friends, and then he would cry because it hurt. But never in public. Only in front of his loved ones he would let it all out. It was fun seeing him now, as such a respectable position. _Who would've ever thought of that._ She knew he liked sports (not only football), but it was hard to thing of him as a hardcore athlete when he would go red at the kissing scenes in k-dramas.

"Hey. I'm meeting Arthur in five minutes, so I'll head out. Will you stay?" asked Claire. That snapped Nina's mind back into the present. She turned to er sister.

"Huh? Yeah, yes. I'll stay." She nodded her head furiously, which made Claire chuckle.

"Okay. See you later then." And she left with quick steps the field.

Arthur was waiting just outside the front gate, and he waved at her. She approached him, and without a second word, dragged him to walk away fast.

"What are we going to do, Claire?" He asked after they have settled down on an empty playground. She sighed.

"I believe we don't have a choice, really. We have to join. And besides, how bad will it be?"

He looked at her. "I don't know. Ghost hunting sounds pretty dangerous if you ask me."

She turned her head to look at him, annoyed.

"Yes, it obviously is. But I am a capoeira master and you are practically a professional acrobat by now. It shouldn't be that big of a deal for us." She reminded him. Arthur pondered the thought for a second and then nodded.

"Well, this is it, then? We're accepting?"

"We don't really have a choice, Odion."

"Okay, okay...I-I...I hope it will turn out to be the right choice...but wait...what are we doing about your sister and Jake? Do we just leave them out?" He suddenly asked, worry evident on his voice.

"Well, yeah. That was the deal after all. To leave them out. We're not telling a soul. And after four days, we're telling out decision to Alie and wait." Claire, too, was worried, even if she hid it behind a brave act. But Arthur noticed and hugged her suddenly, making her freeze and a brush to creep its way slowly on her cheeks.

But she hugged back anyway.

The remaining four days passed way too quickly for Claire and Arthur's liking, and they found themselves cold-sweating their way through school. Fortunately for them, the were good actors, so their two companions didn't catch up.

The bell rang.

_It was time._

Nina had a project to work on so she left quickly, and Jake had practice, so it was easy to get away from them. As promised, Alie was waiting outside, catching the attention of the students with her beautiful but icy bitch-face (as Kris called it) and her Gothic style. Because Arthur and Claire kinda knew that would happen, they got out last so they would't catch unwanted attention on themselves.

Alie waved for them to follow her and they walked away from the school.

Jake thought that he was hallucinating for a minute when he saw Claire and Arthur walking with _Alie Seetlop of all people_ from under his helmet, but then he looked again and it was, indeed, them. He followed them with his eyes, a confused and slightly suspicious look on his face.

_What the hell is going on?_

After about ten minutes of walking they reached White Raven cafe, but instead of going through the front door that lead in the store Alie lead them towards the side of the building and then the back, where the back door was located. She reached in the pocket of her jacket and fished out a key ring. She picked a key and unlocked the door, nodding for them to go in.

In front of them was a wooden door, which they guessed was leading inside the store, and on their right side (on their left there was a closed cardboard) there were stairs leading on a second floor and in the basement, it seemed. Alie pointed the stairs that were going upwards and they moved up. Obviously the second floor was Danny and Alie's home. There was a small hall in front of the entrance into the main house, where various pairs of shoes were placed. Alie turned to them.

"If you feel more comfortable, you can get your shoes off here." she said, and they did, when Alie herself just walked through the the purple chain curtain that was decorating the entranc with her creeper shoes on.

"Danny, I'm back! And I have the newbies with me!" She shouted upon entering, as she got her coat off and volunteered to take Claire and Arthur's, too.

She pointed them to a couch and they sat down, when Alie herself sat on a bright green fuzzy poof that was lying around. A few moments after Danny himself entered and took his place on the floor next to Alie. He looked as nervous as Claire and Arthur felt, when Alie looked nonchalant, almost smug, just sitting there. Danny spoke first.

"So...Alie told me that she asked you to join Team Phantom..." He said, trailing off awkwardly. It was weird for them to see the normally controlled and untouchable 'Nedail Tonnef' act like that. Claire smiled.

"Yeah, she did."

"So, then...are you in or not?" He asked with a hopeful gleam on his eyes.

"Well, we talked about it, and we actually decided on joining four days ago." She answered, smiling. At the sound of that Alie smirked and Danny grinned a bright smile. He turned and looked up to his fiancée, making her smirk turn into an affectionate half-smile, and she ruffled his hair. It was really cute. _And weird._ But cute.

They stayed there for a little while, talking with the couple about this and that.

"I knew you would accept. Anyhow, I feel that we will work together spectacularly! Today is your last 'free' day. Tomorrow do come over and we shall hand you over your equipment and talk about the technical stuff, alright?" The duo nodded at Alie, who gave them the instructions. "Great. Would you two like to stay a bit more or are you in a hurry?"

Arthur checked the time and his eyes widened. He turned to Claire, then to Alie.

"Jake's practice is almost over, and I believe Nina should start heading home any minute now! We should REALLY go!" He said urgently.

"Fine, then. It was nice today. Let me see you out."

They went down the stairs and out of the back door. As the pair turned to leave though, Alie interrupted them.

"Wait! I forgot to tell you who your team-mates are." She said, making them look at her curiously.

"Who are they?" Claire asked.

Alie grinned sardonically, making Arthur gulp and Claire to have a bad feeling.

"Edward Lancer and his wife, Shizuno Ishiyama."

_What?_

A/N: SHOUTOUT TO EXO'S KRIS FOR LENDING ME HIS NAME (Arthur's foster brother). So, this was quite the quick chapter...and it's kinda small...and the ending is sucky...sorry! But I won't update for some time now so I hurried this up! Thanks to everyone who's reading this, please review to let me know whether I'm doing this correctly or I should give up. PLEASE REVIEW! FREE COOKIES FOR THE REVIEWERS!FIGHTING!


	6. Chapter 6

**Ynecrolys: Oh my Galaxy you're officially one of my most favourite people in this planet! If this story goes well (who am I kidding, people saw it and said good stuff, it's already going awesomely for me) you're getting infinitely free cookies and pizza. I'm considering taking a screenshot of your review and make it into a poster, then glue it on my ceiling to see it every morning when I wake up!**

**Azorawing: You're still here! Can I hug you? I'm very happy every time I see your name on the reviews! Here, cookie!**

Claire didn't expect this. Actually, scratch that. Claire didn't expect anything when she agreed on this. But if she did expect anything, it wasn't this.

She sighed, wiping the sweat from her brow and checking her Spectre Deflector. She then looked around wearily and held her ecto pistol tightly. She ran.

If a month ago someone told her that she would be running home with full ghost hunting equipment on, she would've recommended them to see a psychiatrist. But here she is, making sure that she would be safely at her house without being noticed by wandering ghosts.

She was at the porch a few seconds after, and sat down, exhausted from the psychological pressure. She took her time hiding her pistol, deflector and Thermos into her bag, and then sat down on the stairs, thinking back.

It has been about a month since she and Arthur found out the truth about Nedail Tonnef, and three weeks since they officially joined Team Phantom, learning on the way that they would be juniors to their own professor and school principal. Well, that was an awkward meeting. Ishiyama and Lancer were very friendly and kind to them, but Claire was almost trembling from nervousness the entire time. Of course, every day they acted as if they didn't have any relation to each other beside Student-teacher. That was going well enough.

During that month Claire has gotten burnt, bruised, scratched and slashed more times that she could count, and still _no one had any idea. Not even Nina. Wow!_

She stood up and knocked on the door. When no one answered in the beginning, she began to search into her pockets for her keys and turned to unlock the door, when, right that moment, Nina opened the door, frowning.

"Where were you?"

"Why do you care? I wasn't late or anything." She said, pushing her to get into the house. Nina scowled but reluctantly let her, and slammed the door after she entered.

"Oy, Claire! I wanna talk to you!" Nina exclaimed, kinda rudely. Claire turned to her, feigning innocence.

"Hm...? What for?" She asked, letting her long vibrant red hair fall down from her high ponytail as they walked up the stairs to their bedroom.

"Oh? Eh..you know...this and that... Jake and I worked a little on the Bloody Queen, you know..." Nina answered, rubbing the back of her head. They were currently sitting in their common bedroom, each on her respected bed, facing each other. Claire's eyes softened.

"Yeah, then, sure...let's do that." She smiled at her sister, and Nina grinned back in return.

Nina turned around and picked up her backpack that was lying on the side of her bed. She fished out a book and some papers.

"So...we found some stuff about her bio...like when and how she first began to live as a pirate and stuff. Did you know that it's kinda her brother's fault she ended up as one?"

Now that piqued Claire's attention. "Really? How come?"

"Well, their sister was a complete bitch. A gold digger on the ultimate form. She wanted to marry (at a very young age) a rich guy, and that guy was the late Governor Swan. Their mother didn't exactly jump at the idea, she apparently was a very soft person, and Talia along with Jack cherished her a lot. But then she was mysteriously murdered one night and suddenly expectations rose for the three kids.

"Amelia was all but jumping from excitement, and she was manipulating everyone, and also acting, how can I say... _terrible_ towards Talia. At one point she even slept with one of Jack's rich friends. And she was freaking what? 15? As expected, Jack got sick of it and left, 18 at the time. Talia, 10 at the time followed him. He took her under his wig and they were caught up in piracy.."

"So...is that all?" Claire was captivated by the story, and she really didn't want it to end like that.

"Well, no. Did you know that it was revealed that Sanglant Talia was a girl when she turned 13 and couldn't hide it any-more?" At that, Claire's eyes widened.

"Woah..seriously..."

"Anyway, you know what Sanglant Talia's legend is, right?" Nina asked.

"Well, who doesn't? It was rumoured that the hair on the back of her head had turned a dark crimson from the tons of blood she had spilled. Also, that she managed to erase very notorious pirates, and that, when she was caught, they hanged her and stabbed her, but she died only when they shot her through the head. _Twice_. She's rumoured to be the most psychotic person to ever step foot on this world."

They both got silent for a minute, then shuddered.

"I'm happy she lived like..500 years ago..." Nina exclaimed, falling back and onto her pillow. Claire mimicked her action and sighed.

"Yeah...can't disagree with that..."

Silence.

"Hey, Claire..." started Nina suddenly.

"Hm? Yeah?" Claire snapped out of her thoughts that surrounded a 500 years old legend about a psychotic piratine.

"Since when are you and Arthur hanging around with Alie Seetlop?"

Claire almost heard her thoughts breaking apart. She managed to keep an almost straight face, and turned to look at her sister, alarm evident in her voice.

"W-What? Where did you get that from?" she stammered, surprised.

Nina eyed her suspiciously. She knew that her twin was a master (or mistress?) in controlling her emotions, and being surprised meant only one thing... she looked straight up the ceiling again.

"Jake told me he saw you leaving together after school about three weeks ago." she announced.

_What?WHAT?_

"And why do you bring this up _now_?" Claire was feeling annoyed, albeit a little betrayed.

"I didn't find the chance, really. Or forgot about it." She shrugged it off and then shot an amused look towards her sister. "So it IS true..."

"No it isn't. I don't know what Jake saw, it's wrong." she was absolute on her tone, which made Nina even more amused.

"Don't get your panties on a twist, sis. It doesn't matter. But I feel a bit betrayed, you know. I'd like to hang around sometime, too."

Claire sighed. She gave up. There was no stopping Nina now.

"I'm not promising anything." She turned her back to her sister. "I'm sleeping. 'Night, Nicolene." Nina chuckled silently when her sister used her full name.

"'Night Alessandra."

She turned off the light.

After it was officially confirmed that Claire and Arthur were, in fact, around not only Alie, but Ned too, way way more often than they let out, a general air of suspicion wavered around the company, mostly from the part of the two members that were left out. Even Edward Lancer noticed, and confronted his young Phantom team-mates on the first chance he got.

"Kids, is everything al-right with your friends?"

They were currently getting prepared to head out for patrol. Arthur was making sure his backpack was sturdy and Claire was tying her hair tightly in a high ponytail. They looked at him surprised.

"Yeah..why do you ask?" asked Arthur, confused.

"The air around you is kinda strange lately. Are you sure they are not aware of anything?"

Claire looked down guiltily, which made Lancer to mentally freak out a little.

"Well, they don't know what is actually going on, but they do know that we're hanging around...well...'Ned' and Alie." She answered him. "They're suspicious."

"Ah...I see...well, do be a little more careful from now on. Now, head out! Good Luck!" He bid them farewell for now and sent them off to patrol. They waved back at him as they ran off, and he smiled for a minute before taking his position in front of the monitoring machines.

"I really wish we won't have to take more members into this team any time soon..."

Little did they all know, right at that moment Nina was sitting on Jake's bed in the Fenton residence, Jake himself facing her from his desk chair. They both looked serious.

"So, she told you it was nothing?" He asked her, a look of disbelief crossing is face.

Nina crossed her legs and nodded.

"Yeah..she refused to say a word about it. She just admitted tha it was happening and then nothing...she completely clammed up..."

Sience fell, and only Jakes heavy disbelieving breathing could be heard. Nina looked at him.

"Jake...what is going on?"

"I don't know, Nina...I really don't know..."

So they decided to find out. Arthur and Claire were acting as if nothing was wrong, yet when Alie or Ned were mentioned, they completely shut up. And Nina, having the experience of ten years worth capoeira on her back, decided to follow them. Jake on the other hand, he followed them too, just NOT from rooftop to rooftop and tree to tree.

As expected, a few hours after school ended Claire left home and met up with Arthur, backpacks set on their backs. The went to White Raven cafe. _What a surprise._

Nina spotted Jake from the rooftop she had set to a while later, acting as if he was talking to the phone. She rolled her eyes and called him. She laughed when she saw him jump when his phone rang.

"Yes?" He answered, bewildered.

"Look up." She said, and when he did, she waved at him and jumped down.

Jake looked at her, eyes wide, as he hung up.

"I will never get used to this." he muttered.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say. So, anything I should know about?"

"No. Only one question. What takes them so long?" Jake dead panned and Nina's eyebrows shot up.

"True...we are here about what? Three hours? More? I'm getting annoyed, too." She breathed out.

"Yeah let's-..." Jake was interrupted when the front entrance of White Raven cafe opened, revealing Arthur and Claire in what looked like mission clothes (Nina couldn't find any better way to explain Claire's tight clothing and Arthur's baggy one, along with their backpacks and various pieces of equipment she saw hanging around on them). Jake frowned.

"What-..."

"Shhh!" Nina silenced him by putting a finger on his lips and pulling him down to hide behind a parked car. Suddenly, their targets were on the move, running.

_'Since when was Claire so fast?'_ Nina thought, trying to catch up to them.

They ran, into various directions, through squares, fields, parks, everywhere. Jake was pretty sure they covered the entire west side of Amity Park that night.

A couple of hours have passed, and their targets now seemed calmed down and ready to finish whatever it was their purpose. Arthur told something to Claire, and she laughed.

And then it happened.

A bright green flash appeared, heading towards them, and when it met the ground a few mere feet away from him and Nina it exploded, blinding them both for a moment and throwing them a few feet into the street. Jake threw his arms around Nina to protect her form the explosion and they both looked up, completely dumbstruck.

Arthur saw them and ran towards them, when Claire was running towards a group of floating green-...wait_, are those ghosts?_

"Are you okay?" asked Arthur, bewildered. Jake looked at her and she nodded.

"Yeah." He answered to their Egyptian friend, who in return sighed with relief before looking at them judgingly.

"I won't ask why you're here, but you have to get out. Go! RUN!" He pushed them off the ground and away. Nina turned to him.

"But..."

"No buts! We will talk about this later! Now GO!" He managed to say this right before another explosion went off right behind him, making Jake and Nina take the message and leave.

_What the hell is going on here?_

A/N: So here it is...chapter 6. Next chapter, as you probably guessed, Nina and Jake will be in for many surprises. Tell me though, do you want them in Team Phantom or not? Should they be on the sidelines-kind of? I really don't want to break up my leading company of four, but whatever my few readers want, I will give it to you, so please tell me. Also, we saw Sanglant Talia's backstory. What do you think about that? (Well, it's not complete yet, but there are parts that no one nows except Talia herself). So! REVIEW! And I promise cookes and badges (Ynecrolys' idea! Banzai for Ynecrolys!) FIGHTING!


	7. Chapter 7

**Okay, I didn't update for like...three weeks, and I'M SORRY! During the first week I had a terrible case of writer's block, and during the second I had exams every single day, so I couldn't breathe at all! I actually had writer's block for even more than that, so I pressed myself to write this, so I honestly believe it's terrible. Well, you were warned :P**

"Well...shit."

That was the first thing that was coming into Arthur's mind at the moment. It was only half an hour ago when he got two of his best friends, Nina and Jake to run away from an ongoing ghost battle, and things were no good. He turned to his partner in ghost hunting missions and last best friend, Claire, who was staring at the pavement from her spot on the ground thoughfully.

"What are we going to do now?" He asked her, thus breaking the heavy silence. The pressure was so much it was almost possible to cut it with a knife. Claire looked up surpised and blinked.

"Huh? Oh...well, there's only one thing we can do, really." She stood up and dusted herself off. "We tell the others. You know, Danny, Alie etc. After that, as a team we will decide whether to tell the whole story or just bits and pieces. But we are not getting easily out f this one." Claire exclaimed and started walking off.

Arthur sighed and picked up his backpack.

"Tell me something I don't know."

They expected it, really. Alie was fuming, Danny was one step before turning into an ice statue, and Lancer and Ishiyama were worriedly looking at them. Arthur was a passive person by nature, when Claire has been raised in a very prideful environment, hence her stern outlook. Given this, they didn't mind Alie's crude lecture about caution and awareness. She wasn't wrong to begin with.

But it wasn't exactly the right time for a lecture, however rightful it would be. So Claire interrupted Alie when her nerves couldn't take anymore.

"You're 100% right, Alie, and we already said we're sorry. But this is really urgent. We need to know what to say to them."

Alie paused, an icy stare decorating her youthful features, and making the duo shudder. She crossed her arms and blowed a strand of hair out of her face.

"Tell them you are hunting ghosts with the aid of those two." she pointed at Lancer and Ishiyama. "They do not need to be aware of the real circumstances. After all, we need as little people as possible to know."

"But they know we're up to something with YOU two, not THOSE two." Arthur pointed out. Alie rolled her eyes. Before she managed to utter another sentence, Danny interrupted her.

"What would you guys like to do? Would you like them to know?" He asked Arthur and Claire, surprising them.

"Well, they ARE our best friend and, well...sister-and-best-friend. It would be comfortable for us if they knew, but it's not really our business. It is YOUR secret, after all. We have no place to make such decisions." Arthur exclaimed and Claire nodded in agreement.

Danny looked at Alie. "Let's just tell them. They can join, too."

Alie looked scandalized for a minute, but then she calmed down and nodded. "If you say so. But, what is done CANNOT be undone, and do not give me that look, Danny, you know Clockwork ain't going to help us out of this one, so be warned. Think about it a little and do not just run and spill everything the moment you are dismissed from here. Is that clear?"

Claire and Arthur nodded seriously.

"Beautifully. Dismissed." She exclaimed and turned to go upstairs (they were currently at the basement, which was used as training room/lab/base.

When Claire finally reached the front of her house, she froze. There was a figure sitting atop of the stairs, obviously waiting for something. It was pretty obvious who it was, considering they had bright red curly hair and pale skin. Claire stepped closer, moving into the vision of her sister, who raised her head in alarm, and then kept a straight look on her face when realised the identity of the intruder.

"Hey..." Claire waved, clutching the strap of her backpack tightly. Nina didn't answer, so she took place next to her on the stairs.

There was a pregnant pause. Nina took a deep breath and turned to her, looking betrayed.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Claire turned away.

"I-it's not that simple, Nina...there's stuff that...that it just doesn't concern us...well, ONLY us. It's not our place to interfere." Nina's stare hardened.

"I don't see what stopped Arthur and you from telling your best friends about hunting_ freaking _gosts! Who else's job could it be." And before Claire managed to utter another word, Nina's eyes widened in realisation, her mouth forming a silent 'Oh'.

"So _that's _what it's about..." She muttered, deep in thought. Claire didn't like it one bit.

"What are you talking about?" Nina pointed a finger to her twin accusingly.

"Is this why you were hanging out this much with Ned Tonnef and Alie Seetlop?"

Claire was honesly shocked. She knew her sister was perceptive, but she didn't expect her to know about THAT._ Well, that cut down explanation time by a lot._ She paused and changed her demeanor into an amused smirk.

"It seems you got everything figured out already. Yeah, that's basically the reason. Arthur and I, we...kinda found out something about Ned that's, you know, NOT supposed to be known, and they decided that we were legit enough to join their ghost -hunting team." She summarised.

Nina definitely looked calmer, and she silently pondered on the new information, but she didn't look entirely convinced.

On another part of the city, Arthur was staring intently at the ceiling of his room, trying to figure out how to break the news to Jake the next day. He had simply sent a text message to him earlier, requesting to meet him early the next afternoon at White Raven cafe to talk. Alone. It was kind of a silent agreement for him and Claire to deal with their friend of the respectable gender when issues rose. Claire always debayed her sister out of an impending fight, being twins and all, and Arthur was the one to un- confuse or generally calm down Jake, as they knew each other way before the Evans twins moved into their lives in fourth grade.

He was usually very straight-minded and knew how to handle umpossible situations fairly well. But he didn't know how to deal with revelations such as these. He didn't know how oblivious Jake would take it. Damn, he didn't even know what his emotional state was like right now, in order to know what to expect.

And that didn't make up for a good mood in the least.

He sighed and turned to his side, looking at his phone. No calls, texts or e-mails whatsoever. That meant that neither Jake wanted to talk nor Claire had made any progress with her part of the 'mission' (because in his clouded mind, that was what all of this at that moment).

He didn't like any of it in the least bit.

But he also couldn't wait anymore. So, like that, he stood up, grabbing a hoodie and a pair of sneakers, and without bothering to tie up his chest-length black hair he headed out, pulling up the hood, also pushing his headphoned in his ears.

And he ran.

As an almost professional gymnastics athlete, Arthur was very lean and strong, and as a pretty dark person by nature, he generally could work better during late hours. So he went running.

He ran and ran, heavy music blasting in his ears and the breeze hitting his face. He didn't know where he was going and, actually, he didn't wxactly care.

But he sure was surprised when he saw the Fenton residence up front, and slowly his running came to a stop. Arthur didn't even bother opening the front gate. He just jumped over the concrete wall into the front yard.

He was completely unaware of a pair of orange-hued eyes watching him from the park over the street.

A glowing figure, obviously belonging to a female, materialized in front of an old oak tree. She was a ghost. She had long chocolate brown hair, that were a glistering crimson at the length right behind her head. She was in old ragged clothing, obviously male sized, and looked like she jumped out from the 1700s. She dialed a number and put the device on her ear.

A few seconds passed until the person at the end of the line picked up.

_"Hello?"_

"It seems like they already went to them. Obviously they are going to tell. Mission over." She exclaimed. There was a brief pause.

_"That's...good. Great! _

_Come back then, Talia."_

**A/N: Okay, that was it for chapter 7. I wanted to reply to revies too, since that's one of the only things giving me joy in life right now, but since it's like, three in the morning over here, I'll just update this without any more words. (Btw, a bat is screeching outside my window and it's creepy). But still, you know the drill. Free cookies, and awesomely made reviewer badges (courtesy of Ynecrolys-it still isn't allowing me to write you name, why?-) for those who review. GOOD NIGHT! *yawns* Kalinihta (Greek :P Hey, we know them, why not use them?)**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: You probably noticed I've been updating less frequently. Well, this is my last year on high school and I got summer courses for the finals, and I also have a YouTube project going on called 'Greece Reacts to K-pop' (you can check it out, it has subtitles). So, here's chapter eight, which I've been really waiting to write, since something (almost) none of you thought, about my most favorite OC (Alie).**

Jake, despite the generally popular belief, wasn't stupid. Emotionally weak, yes. Clumsy, yes. Even painfully oblivious to certain things. He knew he was. He knew his strenghts, and he knew his weaknesses as well. He grew up with Krista Fenton, after all. Point is, he knew a lot of things.

Academically he wasn't the brightest crayon in the box. Physically he was considered an athletic genious. He knew how to play a dozen sports, stats raging from fairly well to pure perfection. Emotionally he was weak, but he also was fearless when he wanted to.

Jake just knew sometimes. He knew when Mariliene was sad, or when his mom was mad. He knew when Nina had troubles, or when Claire was tired. He knew when Arthur was lonely.

Still, he only knew Claire and Arthur were hiding something when he caught them leaving school with the company of one Alie Seetlop. He only knew of the resemblance between Ned and Danny after Arthur showed him his notes. He only knew that two of his best friends were risking their lives ghost-hunting after they saved his sorry (according to him) athletic butt that night.

And Jake hated himself. He hated himself for not knowing. For not noticing. For choosing the worst moment possible to be oblivious.

He was still mentally beating himself up for it when there was a knock on his door and Arthur's head peeked in, his long hair rolling off his shoulders like black silk. Jake looked up, surprised, and saw his friend frown.

Arthur invited himself in and he sat facing Jake, on the edge of his bed.

"You were blaming yourself again, weren't you?"

To say Jake was surprised would be the understatement of the century. He almost fell off his chair.

"H-how..?"

"Oh, please, Jake. I've known you since we were both literally in diapers. You're like an open book. It wasn't really that hard." Arthur expalined. Jake couldn't really argue with that one. Arthur continued.

"But please stop. It has nothing to do with you. Well, besides the part where your head was almost blasted off your shoulders. You get my point, though." Arthur's words calmed the distressed Jake, and he let out a defeated sigh.

After a pregnant pause, Jake spoke up.

"I want to help, too."

Arthur looked at him with widened eyes and his lips forming a small 'o'.

But then he did something completely unexpected (according to Jake).

A huge bright grin blossomed in Arthur's face and he let out a laugh.

"Well then that is great because that is exactly what I came here for. I mean, we have met in the past in some pretty crazy hours, but right now it wasn't exactly normal to knock on your door in black midnight."

Jake was dumbfounded. "You. Came here. To ask me. To join you and Claire and Alie and Ne-Danny...to ghost hunting."

Arthur nodded, a cat-like smile on his face.

"...Are you sure?"

Arthur nodded again, still smiling.

"...You're insane."

Arthur nodded a final time and stood up with a refresshed grunt. He walked over to his friend and patted his shoulder.

"Well, glad we agreed, glad we talked, it was a great mission, glad I went through with it. Man, I really thought you would kick me out, being the scaredy cat you are..."

"Hey! I resent that!" Jake protested.

"Yeah, whatever, whatever...Anyway, we have a meeting over this on Friday, so make sure to be at the Raven at 8:00 am. You and Nina are both in by now."

"Wait,wait,wait. The chipmunk is in this, too?" asked Jake disbelievingly.

"Well, now she is. Claire just texted. She told her about it half an hour ago, and believe me, Nina was thrilled. I just wonder what is going to happen when Nina finally manages to piss Alie off, which we both know is bound to happen sooner or later..." Arthur sighed, feeling suddenly dread setting in his stomach.

"Is it that bad?" Arthur turned to face him.

"Oh you wouldn't believe me even if I told you."

And on high spirits after making it through that last-minute mission, Arthur found himself running back at his home with no trouble. He briefly considered checking on the Evans sisters before going back, but he was pretty sure they (at least one of them) were asleep by that time.

So he just went silently home, and sighed in relief when he found out that Kris had stayed up watching anime and was able to open the door for him.

Jake on the other hand finally knew, and he slept soundly that night, with a content feeling making his head light and a smile to appear.

Danny checked his clock again and started fidgeting. Edward Lancer eyed him worriedly from across the couch as he updated the Team Phantom's ghost files. A few moments after he got sick of the constant tapping noice Danny's left foot was making and the movement in the background of his view, he spoke up.

"Don't worry, she'll come back." he assured the teenager, who looked at him surprised.

Danny blinked twice before answering.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure she will. It's just...she called me at least one hour ago that the mission's complete and she's STILL not back! Fenon Works isn't that far anyway!"Lancer could see the young halfa was slowly freaking out, so he interrupted him.

"Danny, don't worry. She'll be just fine. She's way more experienced and older than you, and you have to be cool-headed to prepare for Friday's introduction to the newcomers."

A helpless look was decorating Danny's face by then._ Where is Shizuno when you need her? I may be a teacher but I'm just no-good with over-protective emotional 200 year old teenage half-ghosts._ He thought equally helplessly. He tried not to show his inner emotional state, as it would freak the halfa even more.

"She probably just went to the Zone or something. You don't have a Fenton Phone on right now, do you? You wouldn't be able to talk to her if she's in the Zone then, anyway. Don't worry!"

Danny finally let out a sigh and fell back on the couch, looking at the ceiling.

A comfortable silence with the only noice being the typing on the keyboard from Lancer was set, and it lasted for a few minutes before Danny apparently felt oblidged to break it.

"You know, Edward, when I was a kid I wanted to be an astronaut...I really wanted to see how it was up there, in space..it looked so free and, you know...spacey" he chuckled "..then the accident happened and I eventually forgot about it. At various ponts I did end up in space though, and it was exactly as beautiful as I imagined. I've been there about a dozen times, only two of them were before I met her."

Now Lancer was interested. It was quite rare for the teenage halfa to speak of his past, as Lancer knew was very dark and difficult. At moments like these, when Danny let himself free and talked fondly about himself and his past, Lancer could see two contradicting things. He could see a young man physically beaten up by bad luck, but with a great spirit and sense of everything, but he could also see the immortal half ghost that had wisen up through years of painful adventures. So he listened to Danny.

"...One was when I was still kind of a newbie in this. I don't remember how it all happened but it was when I still dreamed of becoming an astronaut and that it was magical. The second time...it was after the deal with my family...and I kinda went there by myself in order to calm down...I ended up falling to my doom...that was when she found me." he turned and smiled at Lancer. "We've been inseparable since."

Lancer watched amazed as Danny sighed fondly and smiled up at the ceiling.

"I still can't believe it's been 200 years. Feels way too little for me. I imagine what it's like for her..." he shuddered.

A knock on the door snapped him out of his thoughts and made Lancer jump.

It took just a moment for Danny to shoot off the couch and open the dor widely.

A familiar petite figure was standing there, chocolate brown hair falling on her back, gothic clothes and orange-tinted light brown eyes.

Danny grinned and hugged her, kissing the top of her head affectionately.

"You were late." he accused.

"I went to the Zone." She answered.

"I was worried." he sighed. She smiled up at him and stood on her toes to peck him on the lips.

"I know. I am sorry. It will not happen again, I guarantee it."

He let out an exasperated sigh and pushed her gently in the house, closing the door as he walked in behind her. She spotted Lancer on the couch and she waved.

"Hello, Edward. How are you?"

"I'm great, thanks. Now that you're back, I can finally take my leave from babysitting your fiance." he said jokingly, and she smiled.

"Yes, I am quite thankful for that, actually. You should have not bothered. Danny is a grown-up, after all."

He laughed and stood up, as she pulled her hair up in a ponytail, making the glistering crimson color behind her head shine momentarily.

"Ah, no problem, no problem. I'm off now!"

"Do tell Shizuno I said hi."

"I will. See you both!" And he left.

As the door finally closed behind the balding teacher, Danny turned to the figure sitting on the couch. walked quickly to her and hugged her tightly.

"Seriously don't get me worried like that over nothing again." he said.

"It is purely your fault for worrying on the first place. I am your senior, and I know what I am doing. Just do not worry about me." she bit back.

He chuckled and ruffled her hair, staying like that for a few moments. He finally pulled away to look at her face. He smiled.

"Welcome back, Talia."

**A/N: Ta-daaah! Now tell me, how many of you thought of that? I am waiting to hear your thought on that cliffhanger. And also thanks to Deathfang17 for beta-reading the first four chapters. It was really helpful! XD Fighting!**


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